Nyger or sunflower seeds? (1 Viewer)

[Nature__lover]

I have heard nyger seeds and sunflower seeds attract greenfinches , goldfinches, and sometimes even redpolls (i've previously had green&gold finches..but they've disappeared)

I would love to attract these birds. so what would be the best food to attract them?

Nyger
black sunflower
striped sunflower
sunflower hearts.

(please bare in mind i live in the UK so my goldfinches/greenfinches etc are different to american ones etc)

 

[squidge]

Any of the above will do for the species you are looking for, Nyger seed is probably best for Goldfinches. On the couple of nyger seed feeders I have it seems to attract Goldfinches and Redpolls not so much the other species. I also use sunflower hearts and no mess seedmix as the mess from the shells off sunflower seeds is unsightly. Ger.

 

[theconstantwalker]

Sunflower seeds all the time for me even my Goldfinches prefer them.

 

[frankiex]

i bought a £18 bag of nyger seed after been told it was a magnet for gold finches,never seen one,but the collared doves love it.lol.

 

[Guinness537]

I put out both Nyger and Black Oil, that way all the bases are covered. Although the AGF's prefer the Nyger, they never turn away from the B.O.S.S.

B

 

[Marmot]

Watch out with the nyjer seed that it has been treated otherwise you may get spouting plants in the garden.

I gave up on nyjer seed years ago hardly any of the finches touched it they much prefer sunflower hearts. With black sunflower you are cutting your potential takers down as not all birds can get through the shell.

 

[Mary]

Here, both goldfinch and siskin feed on the nyger as much as the sunflower hearts. It means they don't have to queue so much!

 

[Adam69]

Nyger and Sunflower seed attract a good number of Goldfinches , I also get the odd Greenfinch on the Sunflower seed

 

[Denny Woodthorpe]

Sunflower hearts are preferred by everything, but are the most expensive. Goldfinches even prefer them to the niger seed.
Long-tailed tits will only visit the fat balls. (Nine of them on one feeder last evening!)

 

[ja109]

I use sunflower seeds and get goldfinches and greenfinches visting my feeders. Sunflower seeds are a good all year round food without the mess of black sunflower seeds - I would try these first and with a bit of luck and time it won't be long until the birds notice your full feeders.

Kind regards

 

[Dmacaskill]

i only ever had the odd goldfinch on peanut feeders that is until i started feeding nyger seed last winter and had a winter max of 21, this winter i have had 43 mostly feeding on spilt seed on the ground ,bramblings also feed on spilt nyger 6 (today).siskins and redpolls are also keen on nyger.

 

[Andrew Goodall]

It can take weeks for Goldfinch to find your nyger seed but once they do they hammer it. Redpolls are starting to feed on nyger in Norfolk UK, i wondered if this is being observed in other parts of the country?

 

[Nature__lover]

thanks everyone for your comments. I've bought some sunflower seeds. I'll try them out and tell everyone what species it brings. if it's unsuccessful I'll try nyger.

 

[Zukn]

I first put out mixed seed some chaffinches grond fed on the spill from the sparrows, then black sunflower, plenty of tits and sparrows on that, no finches, I then put out sunflower hearts and got goldfinches, so I put out nijer and they are all over it, and the green finches have showed up for the black sunflower and hearts.

 

[jpscloud]

I always just fed sunflower hearts and had a good range of the usual visitors plus a seven or eight strong group of goldfinches over the past two years. I started feeding nyger seed when I went away for three weeks in the summer and only had my sunflower hearts being filled once a week for me. I got a huger nyger seed feeder and filled it right up, hoping that would keep the goldies going - it did!

They go for sunflower hearts mostly, but have a good go at the nyger seed every now and again - they have that feeder to themselves too, apart from one elusive redpoll! It's good to know there's something there for them that won't run out too fast.

 

[Nature__lover]

No success with black sunflower seeds. coal tits enjoy them but not much else.
Will be buying a seed feeder and sunflower hearts in the morning. fingers crossed I will have Goldfinches soon.

 

[anythingbutsquirrels]

Blackoil sunflower is the most universally accepted wildbird seed...problem is...squirrels love it too. check out the feeder at www.geminiproductsllc.com they seem to have solved it. I have two of them in my yard.

 

[bethan.nature18]

Goldfinches will probably prefer nyjer seeds, but sunflower seeds will attract a wider variety of birds. Sadly I have seen a sudden decline in Greenfinches in my garden, and now there is none at all. :'( I think this is due to a disease that is going around.

 

[Nature__lover]

I've had the same problem bethan.nature18.
I had greenfinches (and once goldfinches) in june & now they've gone and haven't came back!

 

[Sahria]

I put up a Black Oil Sunflower feeder, a Nyger tube, and a suet/fat ball feeder that also has Black Oil SF in a hopper feeder above it. They're all spaced out so when the House Finches and House Sparrows swarm the sunflower the other birds have somewhere to go.